Brussels – The 9th International Conference of Tibet Support Groups, held recently in Brussels, Belgium, and they called on Chinese government to release more than 1,000 Tibetans detained in Dege County, eastern Tibet, for peacefully protesting against the construction of a mega-dam in their region and the forced relocation of villages and monasteries. Tibet support groups also called for an end to all forced relocations of rural Tibetans and centuries-old Tibetan monasteries.
The 9th International Conference of Tibet Support Groups began its three-day session in Brussels, the capital of Belgium, from February 23 to February 25, 2024. More than 170 members of Tibet support groups from 42 countries, as well as leaders of the central Tibetan administration, took part in the meeting, which aims to strengthen their efforts to deal with the serious and urgent situation in Tibet.
The International Conference of Tibet Support Groups is organised by the Tibet Interest Group of the European Parliament in partnership with the Belgium-based International Campaign for Tibet at the Hotel Thon in Brussels. The Tibet Office in Brussels and the Department of Information and International Relations of the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) are facilitating the event, which is funded by the Tibet House Trust in London.
Rigzin Genkhang, Representative, Office of Tibet, Brussels, welcomed all participants to the Conference. The Mikulas Peksa, President of Tibet Interest Group, European Parliament, and Prof. Hans Gert Pöttering, former President of the European Parliament, as well as by Khenpo Sonam Tenphel, Speaker of the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile, Senator Eustache-Brinio, Chair of the French Parliamentary Group for Tibet, Norzin Dolma, Kalon, Department of Information and International Relations, and Sikyong Penpa Tsering of CTA gave speeches and highlighted the serious human rights situation in Tibet in front of participants from 42 countries.
His Holiness the Dalai Lama sent a message for the 9th International Conference of Tibet Support Groups, and he wrote, “The widespread interest of the international community across the world has been a major source of encouragement and support in our efforts to preserve our identity and keep the Tibetan cause alive.” and extended appreciation to Tibet supporter for voluntarily devoting time and resources to working for the just cause of the Tibetan people. “We consider you not as pro-Tibetan but pro-justice.” His Holiness added.
According to the report of CTA, "The Conference highlighted the systematic effort by the Chinese Government to eradicate Tibet’s distinct national and cultural identity through its system of colonial boarding schools, in which three out of every four Tibetan students, as young as four years old, are taken from their parents and denied the opportunity to be educated in their own language and culture."
"They condemned ongoing efforts to suppress religious freedom in Tibet, including through the attempt to control the process of recognizing reincarnations. The Conference reiterated that the Tibetan people have the right to manage their own religious affairs. Only His Holiness the Dalai Lama, and the people he entrusts, have the right to decide the process of recognizing his reincarnation," the report continues.
it states, "Tibet Support Groups demands the immediate release of all Tibetan political prisoners, including the Panchen Lama, who was subjected to enforced disappearance by the Chinese authorities at the age of six. It condemns the detention and mistreatment of all Tibetans advocating for human rights, including the recent case of Gonpo Kyi."
"The participants of the conference noted with alarm the illegal detention of over 1,000 Tibetans in Dege in recent days for peacefully protesting a proposed dam, which will result in their forced resettlement and the destruction of several monasteries. It calls for the immediate release of all who have been detained, an end to all forced relocation of rural Tibetans," it added.
"The Conference is profoundly concerned about the devastating impact of China’s policies on Tibet’s fragile and vital environment, notably the damming of Asia’s rivers, destructive mining practices and coercive settlement of nomads, all of which exacerbate the climate crisis and environmental destruction on the Tibetan Plateau, most likely destabilizing regional security. The conference calls upon the international community to recognise its collective responsibility to the wellbeing and integrity of Tibet’s fragile and globally important environment," the report says.
The Participants expressed their strong belief that nonviolent advocacy to resolve the Tibet-China conflict must be a priority of the international community, and declared their deep commitment to this goal by increasing the level of strategic collaboration with movements fighting for their human rights and freedom, including the brave people of East Turkistan, Southern Mongolia, Hong Kong and Taiwan, as well the countless Chinese defenders of human rights and democracy, especially the new generation of activists inspired by the White Paper Revolution.
The Conference commends, and with great appreciation welcomes, the individual and joint declarations of support from governments around the world calling for an end to the violations of the Tibetan people’s human rights. The Conference is grateful to the many elected representatives and government officials who continue to press the Chinese Government to meet the international legal obligations to respect the rights of the Tibetan people and to engage in dialogue with representatives of His Holiness the Dalai Lama to pursue a mutually beneficial solution to the Tibet-China conflict.
